Planet ISKCON

subalo yah priya-sresthah sa gauridasa-panditah |

In Vraja, Gauri Das Pandit was Subala, one of the twelve Gopals. He is one of Nityananda Prabhu’s dearest associates. (Gaura-ganoddesa-dipika 128)

Gauri Das’s first residence was in the village known as Shaligram, not far from Muragacha. Later he moved to Ambika Kalna in Burdwan district, where his Sripat is extremely well known. His father’s name was Kamsari Mishra and his mother was Kamala Devi.

Gauri Das was possessed of great spiritual power. He was able to give or take Krishna prema to anyone. He surrendered everything he had to Nityananda and made Chaitanya and Nityananda the masters of his life and soul. (Chaitanya Charitamrita 1.11.26-7)

A wonderful story is told about Mahaprabhu and Gauri Das Pandit in Ambika Kalna. It is said that on the day that Mahaprabhu paddled across the Ganges to come to visit Gauri Das, he sat under the tamarind tree. Gauri Das asked for Mahaprabhu to stay permanently there in Ambika.

In order to fulfill his devotee’s desire, Mahaprabhu revealed that his form and that of Nityananda Prabhu were in a nearby neem tree. It is also said that when these deities were being carved, Nityananda was physically present. Conquered by Gauri Das’s love for Them, the deities would physically eat everything that he offered Them.

One time, Chaitanya Dasa, Gauridasa’s foremost disciple, organized a huge sankirtana festival on the bank of the Ganges. Enraptured by the kirtana, Gauridasa’s Deities jumped off the altar and joined the Devotees in chanting and dancing. Discovering the Deities missing from the Temple, Gauridasa grabbed a stick and ran to catch Gaura-Nitai.

Seeing his angry mood, Gaura-Nitai vanished. At that moment, Gauridasa watched in amazement to see Gaura-Nitai enter the heart (hrdaya) of Chaitanya Dasa. Gauridasa embraced his beloved disciple, bathed him with tears, and said, “You are most fortunate. From today your name will be Hrdaya Chaitanya, one who holds Shri Chaitanya within his heart.”

Gauri Das Pandit Goswami disappeared in the month of Shravan on the sukla dvadasi, the twelfth day of the waxing moon.

A lady came near my table. She seemed shy at first, but when I was done speaking with someone else, she walked up and took three Russian books. Her name was Camilla, she was from Russia, and although she spoke perfect English, she naturally preferred her native Russian. When she asked about the best way
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By Dr. Baladeva Dasa I am glad to announce the release of Sri Baladeva Vidyabhusana’s commentary on the Gopala-tapani Upanisad. Having been published only once, in 1943, this important commentary has been out of print for many decades ever since. The “Tapani” is a sub-category of mystical Upanisads that shed light on their respective deities,
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